Manchester United began their Europa League campaign with a frustrating 1-1 draw against FC Twente at Old Trafford on Wednesday night.
Despite dominating the match and taking the lead through Christian Eriksen in the first half, United failed to create enough clear-cut chances to secure a win. A mistake by Eriksen allowed Sam Lammers to equalize for Twente.
Match Overview
Erik ten Hag made some slight rotations for the visit of his boyhood club, fielding a strong lineup that included Manuel Ugarte, Christian Eriksen, Harry Maguire, and Amad Diallo.
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The game started slowly for both teams, but United nearly found themselves behind early on when Lammers’ shot after a low cross narrowly missed the target. The hosts controlled possession in the opening stages but struggled to create any significant threats. It wasn’t until 25 minutes in that Twente goalkeeper Lars Unnerstall was tested, saving what could have been a spectacular own goal from Mees Hilgers, with Joshua Zirkzee lurking nearby.
From that point, United began to build attacking momentum. Zirkzee continued to probe, and Lisandro Martinez had a shot blocked before Eriksen finally put the home side ahead. After Diogo Dalot’s attempt to penetrate the box was thwarted, the loose ball fell perfectly for Eriksen, who struck it first time into the far top corner.
As the first half concluded, Twente enjoyed a brief period of possession, though Andre Onana remained largely untested.
The second half started similarly slowly, but United began to ramp up their intensity around the hour mark. However, it was unexpected when Twente equalized. Right-back Bart van Rooij made a powerful run, advancing the ball 70 yards upfield. Just when it seemed the attack would fizzle out, Eriksen lost possession to Lammers, who advanced and deceived Onana with a shot at the near post.
In the final 15 minutes, Zirkzee forced an important save from Unnerstall, executing a Ronaldinho-esque stepover before firing a fierce shot.
As the match approached stoppage time, Unnerstall made a crucial save to deny a potential own goal after Harry Maguire’s header was deflected. The only blemish on Manuel Ugarte’s otherwise impressive performance was a glaring miss on a glorious headed chance of his own.